The Green Fairy eats her Veggies!

  While we were in Florida recently, we stopped into Chef Eddie's Magnolia Cafe in Apalachicola.   His lunch special was a blackened Mahi Mahi sandwich and Broccoli Florentine soup.  Since we can't get fresh fish here in Indiana, I've been trying to re-create his soup and haven't been very successful.

  First I just tried Paula Deen's recipe for broccoli soup since it looked the same - steam a head of broccoli then blend it and add 2 cups of chicken stock, 1/2 cup of cream and salt & pepper.  Close, but not quite.  Last night I tried to add about 1/2 cup of fresh Parmesan to make it more of a mornay sauce - I also added Worcestershire sauce and used white pepper instead of black.  Nope - not that cheesy.  Maybe he just added more butter?  Maybe just a wee bit of Parm? 

  If anyone has any ideas, I would love to know!  It was one of the best "gourmet" meals we've purchased in some time and I really enjoyed it.   I also tried raw and baked oysters at Boss Oyster while we were there -- another great restaurant.

  If you are ever near Panama City, be sure to drive down to Apalachicola.   We actually stayed at Cape San Blas with my beautiful Mom and had one of the most enjoyable, relaxing vacations ever.  Highly recommended if you aren't into the "touristy" Florida.

 

The wonderful white chocolate creme brulee we had for dessert!

My amazing Fiance approves!

Also, if you are ever in town, you must stop at the store Riverlily.  It has some beautiful things and also revealed that the spirit Absinthe (the Green Fairy) is legal again in the US.  We bought a bottle at Honey Hole Liquors while we were there and are going to try it this week.  We're told it makes you drunk without feeling drunk, and this stupefying prospect has the soon to be hubby super excited!  I just want this peacock they had at Riverlily!!!

Now I have TWO Best Friends ;)

  There is one day that almost every girl dreams of and thinks about most of her life - the day someone asks for her hand in marriage.  That day finally came for me yesterday, February 13, 2010 (at age 27)(that was a lot of years of dreamin'!)  DAH popped the question with a gorgeous ring and, of course, I said yes.  We're so excited to be venturing into the next step of the rest of our lives, and now we get to start planning a wedding!

  Of course, today is Valentine's Day, and even before the big surprise I'd been planning on cooking a great meal for us to share here at the house.  I decided I wanted to try to copy one of our favorites, Buca Di Beppo's "Prosciutto Stuffed Chicken".   I actually think I nailed it on the first try, and he even suggested that mine might be better!  Now, we still love Buca's, so if you're ever near one of their locations, you must check them out.  Here is my recipe, very un-exact as always:

Prosciutto Stuffed Chicken

-Boneless, skinless chicken breast
-Proscuitto (I found it at Sam's)
-A block of Mozzarella cheese
-Dellalo's Marinara Sauce (it's made in Italy and I found it at the Italian section of Scott's) or your favorite marinara
-Dellalo's Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
-Pesto (I used Sam's Member's Mark brand)
-Heavy whipping cream
-Eggs
-Butter
-Kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder
-Flour
-Toothpicks

Heat oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with foil.

1. In one bowl, crack two eggs and whisk them with a fork.  In another, pour the bread crumbs.  In the last, add flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Set aside.
2. Trim chicken and then carefully cut through the middle, not quite in half (more like a pocket), open it up so it looks butterflied, lay a ziploc bag over it and gently pound it with a meat tenderizer mallet to thin the sides just a bit.
3. Lay about two layers of prosciutto down, followed by a layer of mozzarella.  I sliced the cheese thinly or pressed it flatter between my fingers.  Add another layer of prosciutto. Carefully pull the top back over and push toothpicks through the edges, trying to contain the stuffing with chicken.  I sort of sewed mine through, but it made them very difficult to remove after cooking.
4. Dredge the chicken well in the flour, covering it entirely, shake off excess.  Then through the egg, then into the bread crumbs.  I found it easiest to just hold the chicken over the bowl and apply the bread crumbs thoroughly.  Place on the cookie sheet.
5. Bake for about 45 minutes or until cooked through.  Turn halfway through cooking.
6. Put the marinara in a saucepan over medium low heat to get it up to temperature.
7. In another pan, add almost equal parts pesto and cream; I used maybe a 1/4 cup of pesto the same in cream.  It should be a milky consistency and a lighter green.  Stir well and keep over medium low heat.
8. At the end of cooking the chicken, I raised the temp to 400 degrees and put pieces of butter on the chicken and cooked it another few minutes on each side, to give it a little bit nicer golden brown color.  Let rest and pull toothpicks.
9. Drop a few generous spoonfuls of the pesto sauce down on your plate and spread out.  Lay down the chicken, then top with a ladle or so of marinara.  I also sprinkled on a bit of Romano cheese.

I served with this a version of their antipasto salad and whole clove garlic bread brushed with olive oil and topped with Parmesan slices, putting it in the oven with the chicken after raising the temp to 400, and cooked it until the cheese was melted and the bread was golden.  I wasn't as impressed with this but didn't spend much time on it either.

Antipasto Salad:
-A bag of Italian mixed greens
-A Caesar vinaigrette Italian salad dressing (I used Kraft)
-Pepperoni
-Hot banana peppers sliced (find it in a jar near the pickles)
-Blue cheese or Gorgonzola
-Feta Cheese
-Seedless (or not) Cucumbers
-Red Onion

Chop the pepperoni into quarters, chop/crumble the cheeses (maybe a 1/4 cup of each), chop the peppers, slice the onion, and finally slice and halve the cucumber and add to the salad mix.  Add the dressing and pepper as desired (more than less dressing is preferred).

 We are having milk chocolate crème brûlée with raspberries for dessert.... Mmmm... And I don't necessarily believe that "diamonds are a girl's best friend", because nothing tops my DAH (oooh, I can call him Fiancé
now!), but I certainly hold this one dear to my heart...

 I Love You Honey.  Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!!

Feeling tired? Run down? Listless?

  Well - an update on our ongoing fatigue saga.  DAH was found to have severe Vitamin D and Vitamin B12 deficiencies.   I'd bought both of these for him to try when this all started, but he was his stubborn you're-not-the-doctor self, so he wasn't taking them regularly.  Since starting his mega dose, he is feeling A LOT better - not 100% but much better than he was.   He is also much more cheery and lighthearted than he already was. 

  Apparently, anyone that lives north of Atlanta is prone to Vitamin D deficiency, due to the decreased time in the sun.  Also, Dr. Oz says that fat in the body really sucks down the ol' D, so if you are overweight, it probably wouldn't hurt to take it in a supplement.  While everything says D is for bone health, I feel that it has other effects on the body.  I also feel this is a prescription to get the hell out of Indiana.  Anyone want to buy a house?

   B12 relates to energy and metabolism.  Many weight loss programs will give their patients B12 injections.  Some people also cannot absorb B12 in their gastrointestinal tract - this is called pernicious anemia.

  I've upped my dose of both supplements and also feel much better - however - a word of caution: if it says take it with food, please take it with food.   I pulled a dumb and took a bunch of things at once on an empty stomach tonight and wound up with some pretty donkey-kick-in-the-belly miserable pain. 

   In Nook News:

  B&N released a new software update which I downloaded OTA (over the air).  It makes a few display mods and fixes some bugs that some people were having, which I never experienced.   I'm thinking about making a cover for it because I'm just not too excited about any I've found.  I think it's so easy to hold as-is and don't want to ruin that, but want the screen protected in transit, especially since we are considering some vacations. 

I'm so excited!

   I have finally started my book.  I think it's original (I hope, I haven't read everything), I am passionate about it enough to follow through, and I have a super supportive Sweetheart that has faith in me to do it and do it awesome. 

  So, I should give myself a deadline.  How about... first draft finished by July 4th?  We'll start with that.  One thing I've learned pretty quickly is that research can take more time than writing.  I will just research and write at the same time, so far it's working.

  I'm sooo excited!!!!

Updated Nook Tip

See my article "Quick Nook Tip"  .

I just heard back from my credit union.  They said that Barnes & Noble was submitting to them an authorization request for a transaction of $0.00.  Since there was no dollar amount, it was denied every time.  So whatever your default credit card is for your Barnes & Noble account, the Nook will hit it with this $0.00 "charge" every time you download or unlock a book.

  It seems regular credit cards approve this, but debit cards may not -- let me know your experiences.

Feta makes it bettah.

My Boyfriend and I are really not good at waiting for a particular day to show we love each other.... we tend to just do that every day. We've both experienced love and loss and realize that life is too unpredictable to wait. But I still like a little extra something on the day itself. DAH surprised me last night with an early Valentine's Day present: a beautiful emerald palm tree necklace which makes me think of him and the beach all at the same time. Thank you Sweetheart!  In another nauseous wedding note, I have decided to use emerald green and topaz blue as my colors whenever the Big Day comes.



Maybe.

Gyro Kit 

  If you are lucky like me and can find a gyro kit in your supermarket (I find them in the deli area at Kroger's), you can make them super tasty very easily:

• Slice a white onion and put it in a bowl, fill with water until covered and add a teaspoon or so of dried drill.  
• Slice up cherry tomatoes and sprinkle with Kosher salt, cube some Feta cheese (I Looooove Feta)
• Lay the gyro meat slices into a pan and cook over high heat until they are a little browned on both sides, transfer to a nice aluminum foil packet while you continue prep.
• When all done browning the meat, throw a pita into the pan (that is so fun to say) and swab both sides in the remaining gyro oily goodness.  Brown slightly, it will puff up.  
• Lay the pita on another piece of aluminum foil and hold it, folding it slightly (caution, toasty).  Add the meat, crumble in a cube of feta, line the bottom with the cherry tomato slices, add a generous amount of the onion, and finally give it two good spoonfuls of the tzatziki sauce.  You can now kind of wrap 3/4 of the gyro up in the foil for stain-less eating. 

I serve this with Ore-Ida crinkle fries that are cooked for 25 minutes in a 450 degree oven, then sprinkled with Kosher salt.  Sooooo tasty.
 

I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Pepper!

   Nommmmm...Another successful spur of the moment food experiment.... I seem to do better when I plan less and pretend to be confident.

  My palate is really so inexperienced y'all!  I honestly have no idea which spices are compatible.. is there eHarmony for spice??  I'd call those I'm comfortable with the Preschool Masala; onions, garlic, crushed red pepper, mustard, white pepper, salt, etc.  My next research project will have to be sampling more and learning what they do.  It's so fascinating!  Like they are some kind of culinary pixie dust that whip into a magical food potion, capable of one day giving this girl a big ol rock for my finger ("quickest way to a man's heart" and whatnot)... OK, OK (calm down DAH), this dish is pretty, sorry I didn't take a picture.. it's a romantic shade of pink and bright greens.  Busy ladies don't run on me now,  it's super easy!


Valentine's Day Pretty Chicken (you're gonna love my nuts!)
Serves 2.  (how many were you gonna cook for on V-day??) (Seriously.)
Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
Pecans (whole)
2 Chicken Breasts
Spicy Brown Mustard
Honey
Salad Mix
Banana Pepper Rings
Salt, Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper

1. Marinate chicken in enough dressing to coat, I use a Ziploc bag and press out the air, for at least 20 minutes.
2. Put about a cup of pecans in another bag and smash them with the dressing bottle until they turn to small pieces.
3.  Add about a tablespoon of honey to the chicken bag, add the pecan pieces, and shake to coat.
4.  Place aluminum foil on a broiler pan and lay the chicken on it, turn the broiler to low.  Lightly salt and pepper. Drizzle lightly with the mustard and honey on one side.
5.  Broil chicken for about 6 minutes on each side (be sure to turn with tongs and not pierce the meat unless checking for doneness), for thicker pieces you may want to cover it with a small piece of foil and turn the broiler up to high for about 5 more minutes. 
6.  Plate salad mix and banana peppers.  Slice chicken and place on top.  Dress with more of the Raspberry Vinagriette.   Sprinkle with crushed red pepper.
7.  Nommm...

I served this with baked potatoes with a kinky mix of butter (I used Smart Balance) (BLASPHEMY!!!), kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a sprinkling of paprika.  (I totally used the paprika for color but it added an awesome heat!)

Cheers!